Don't know what to major in??
Don't know what to major in??
(OP)
Hey guys, I just found this board and have been reading up on the automotive, structural and mechanical sections. Since you guys are professional auto. engineers, I thought you could help. From what I've read about the different majors at my school, it seems ME is more theory and covers more fluids and thermo. than SE does, which would be good for head and block design, intakes, etc. I am currently a Structural Engineering major because it sounds more interesting to me than Mechanical, but can auto. manufacturers even use SE's, or is ME a lot better for automotive? I mean, SE's should be able to design (or at least analyze, as I have read on these forums that "design" jobs are nearly impossible to get) chassis and suspension components, etc., right? What I would really like to do is somehow help develop aftermarket parts, like suspension or engine components etc. I know this is a big jumble of what I'm confused about, but any help would be greatly appreciated.





RE: Don't know what to major in??
Will
RE: Don't know what to major in??
RE: Don't know what to major in??
Having said that the prime requirements (apart from being able to tie your own shoelaces) are to be interested in cars, and have an engineering frame of mind.
Cheers
Greg Locock
RE: Don't know what to major in??
RE: Don't know what to major in??
RE: Don't know what to major in??
I wouldn't touch a PhD - it's too big an investment of time, when you don't really know if you want to be that specialised. Typically we have a few PhDs in aerodynamics, crash, and noise and vibration, but they tend to be locked away behind bars and only fed occasionally.
The sad truth is that the big 3 rely mostly on generalists, with fewer than 40% of the engineers concentrating for eight years or more in one area. Even if you do decide to concentrate on one of the more academic areas you'll find such a huge disparity between the academic work and the real work that you'll learn more that is relevant by doing the job.
As an example, I've worked in noise and vibration for 20 years, on and off. In that time I have /never/ had to analytically solve a partial differential equation. What did I send 1/3 of my final year at uni doing? solving PDEs for vibration problems.
Cheers
Greg Locock